Vic Sotto
Marvic Castelo Sotto, more simply known as Vic Sotto, is a Filipino television host, actor, comedian, musician, and film producer. He is well-known for his various television and film projects for most of the major Philippine television networks. Vic Sotto is one of the three pioneer hosts of Eat Bulaga! ''who still remains part of the show up to this day along with Tito Sotto and Joey de Leon. Together, Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto, and Joey de Leon make up the iconic comic triumvirate known as TVJ. Vic Sotto is undeniably considered as the heart of ''Eat Bulaga!, widely appealing to the young and the elderly demographic alike. As one of the respected pillars of Eat Bulaga! ''and a veteran movie and television star, Vic has earned the moniker "Bossing" of the Philippine entertainment industry. Early life Marvic Castelo Sotto was born on 28 April 1954 in Manila, Philippines. His parents were Marcelino Ojeda Sotto and Dr. Herminia Castelo. His mother was a staunch women's rights activist and the first Medical Commissioner of Workmen's Compensation Commission and President Emeritus of the Kababaihang Rizalista ng Pilipina. He has three brothers: Maru, Tito, and Val. All four of them became prominent in the Philippine entertainment industry. Vic comes from a notable political family in the Philippines. His paternal grandfather was Vicente Sotto y Yap, who infamously authored the Press Freedom Law of 1946 during his term in the Senate. His granduncle, Filemon Sotto y Yap, also served as a member of the House of Representatives for four consecutive terms and a senator in the early 1900s. Tito Sotto, his brother, served as a senator in from the 1990s to the 2010s. He studied at Colegio de San Juan de Letran in Intramuros, Manila. Prior to ''Eat Bulaga! Career beginnings Vic is the brother of musician and comedian Tito Sotto. When Tito earned an executive position at the Vicor Music Corporation in the early 1970s, young Vic Sotto would often come to the office to see Tito after school. Vic could sing well and one of the top executives of Vicor placed him under contract with the local record label. Vic's self-titled solo album was one of his brother Tito’s first projects. The result was so good that an enticing offer came from a major foreign label to put Vic under its contract and build him up as a pop idol in Asia. However, his mother put her foot down. Vic was underage and the deal required him to relocate to Indonesia. Still, it was clear that even then Vic already had the makings of a star. Eventually, Vic, along with his brothers Tito and Val, formed VST & Co., which later became one of the most successful bands of the 1970s and is considered by many to be the pioneer of the Manila Sound. The band is well known for songs such as "Awitin Mo at Isasayaw Ko" and "Rock, Baby, Rock". Vic was the lead vocalist of the band. He also became a member of the short-lived band called Blue Jeans, which was known for its hit song "Paniwalaan". Formation of TVJ Also in the early 1970s, Vic joined his brother Tito and Val in IBC-13's gag show Okay Lang ''where he first met radio DJ and comedian Joey de Leon. Tito already became good friends with Joey during one of his band's radio tours where Joey was the DJ. The three comedians soon became great friends and the comedy trio was gradually beginning to take shape. In 1975, Joey became a co-host of GMA Network's afternoon variety show ''Discorama. He invited his former Okay Lang ''co-stars Tito, Val, and Vic to join him at ''Discorama. Only Tito and Vic accepted Joey's invitation. Together, the trio further gained popularity in the segment Tough Hits ''where they parodied various Top 40 hit songs.With ''Tough Hits, the comedy trio of Tito, Vic, and Joey (TVJ) was thus born. Further opportunities were knocking on their door. The trio was soon invited to become pinch-hitters for GMA Network's noontime show Student Canteen ''before being offered to become the hosts of RPN's new flagship noontime show, ''Eat Bulaga!. ''TVJ was also offered to star in a comedy show, ''Iskul Bukol ''(which was aired on IBC-13), where Tito and Joey became the Escalera brothers engaged in never-ending schemes to outwit their classmates, one of whom was the provincial hick Victorio Ungasis (played by Vic Sotto) and their professor Miss Tapia (Mely Tagasa). As an ''Eat Bulaga! Dabarkads Pioneering the show After Student Canteen, ''the trio accepted an offer made by Tony Tuviera to become hosts of a new noontime show on the Radio Philippines Network (RPN-9). ''Eat Bulaga! ''premiered on July 30, 1979. Along with Chiqui Hollman and Richie D'Horsie, Tito, Vic, and Joey became the original hosts of the television program. Vic was 25 years old at the time of the show's premiere. As a musician, Vic also took part in creating the show's infamous theme song in 1982 as the composer of its melody. The lyrics of the song were written by Vincent Dy Buncio with musical arrangement by Homer Flores. Along with Tito and Joey, Vic remains loyal to ''Eat Bulaga! ''even though he didn't sign any contracts with the show since 1979. Vic confessed that he accepted the offer to host the show in order to save enough money to buy his own vehicle with the thought of leaving right after. However, TVJ voluntarily decided to stay with the ''Eat Bulaga! even after all these years. T'he Bossing of ''Eat Bulaga!' ''|194x194px]]While Tito ventured into politics and Joey became known for his dirty jokes and witty sarcasm, Vic has stood as the icon of the ''Eat Bulaga! because of his ageless charisma and modest sense of humor. He has hosted many iconic segments the noontime show, including most editions of Little Miss Philippines, That's My Boy, Laban o Bawi, Pinoy Henyo, and Juan for All, All for Juan: Bayanihan of d' Pipol. He is also known for his tandem with Jose Manalo in the timeless segment Bulagaan ''where they use the 1973 song "Sing" that was popularized by The Carpenters for their knock-knock joke. The show's viewers and contestants had become accustomed to thanking Vic for the cash prizes given by the show. While the prizes don't really come from Bossing, the viewers see him as the heart of the show's public service efforts. Exceptional examples of this could be seen in two of the show's ''Laban o Bawi ''and ''Juan for All, All for Juan: Bayanihan of d' Pipol. As the show began to launch public service campaigns, the announcements are usually done with Vic's presence. Out of all the hosts of the show, Vic has received the most awards from various award-giving bodies for his hosting skills in Eat Bulaga! as well as his countless contributions to the television and film industry. In 2010, Vic Sotto has been ultimately inducted into the Eastwood City Walk of Fame along with Tito Sotto and Joey de Leon. Beyond Eat Bulaga! Showbiz career In the last three decades, he has done countless sitcoms and television shows for the three major networks: ABS-CBN, GMA Network and TV5. Selected list of his most notable television shows are Okay Ka, Fairy Ko! ''(1987–1996), ''Daddy Di Do Du ''(2001–2007), ''Ful Haus ''(2007–2009). He has also hosted several game shows, such as the Philippine version of ''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (2009–2015) and The Million Peso Money Drop ''(2012–2013). He has starred in various films and television shows with Tito and Joey, especially at the height of TVJ in the 1980s and 1990s, such as ''TVJ: Television's Jesters (1989), D'Gradwets ''(1981), and ''Doctor, Doctor, We Are Sick ''(1985). Vic owns the film and television production company M-Zet Productions, which has collaboratively produced films such as the ''Enteng Kabisote ''franchise, AlDub's ''Imagine You & Me (2016), and Trip Ubusan: The Lolas vs. Zombies (2017). Entering the Metro Manila Film Festival Vic Sotto first entered the annual Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) in 2002 with his submission Lastikman, ''a superhero film directed by Tony Y. Reyes based on the comics superhero created by Mars Ravelo. It became the second top-grossing film of that year, just behind Joel Lamangan's ''Mano Po. ''After finding success in his very first MMFF movie, Vic followed up with a new superhero movie ''Fantastic Man ''at the 2003 Metro Manila Film Festival, which also finished second behind Mac C. Alejandre's Captain Barbell. In 2004, Vic revived the 1990s ''Okay Ka, Fairy Ko! ''film franchise '' and submitted a sequel titled Enteng Kabisote: Okay Ka, Fairy Ko: The Legend ''to the Metro Manila Film Festival, in which Vic stars as Enteng Kabisote. It became the highest-grossing film of that year. Due to the massive success of the film, seven additional sequels have been submitted in the following editions of the Metro Manila Film Festival, which includes crossovers with other MMFF film franchise characters. The ''Enteng Kabisote film franchise has achieved massive success throughout the years. He has also submitted other original films to the MMFF as well, including Ang Darling Kong Aswang ''(2009), ''My Little Bossings (2013), My Big Bossings (2014), My Bebe Love (2015), and Meant to Beh (2017). A sequel to the Iskul Bukol television show was also submitted in the 2008 Metro Manila Film Festival titled Iskul Bukol 20 Years After: Ungasis and Escaleras Adventure. After a change in the rules for the 2016 Metro Manila Film Festival, Vic Sotto's submission of the Enteng Kabisote 10 and the Abangers was rejected by the MMFF 2016 screening committee after it decided to pick the entries based on quality instead of whether it will sell tickets in December. This was the first time since 2002 that Vic Sotto would not appear in the film festival. Instead, the film was released on 30 November 2016 together with Vice Ganda's The Super Parental Guardians. Personal life In 1982, Vic Sotto married actress Dina Bonnevie and had two children, Danica and Oyo Boy. The couple broke up in 1986 after Vic and their marriage was annulled in 1992. Actress Coney Reyes joined Eat Bulaga! ''in 1982 as Chiqui Hollman's replacement. During her hosting stint, Coney and Vic became an item and had a son named Vico. Angela Luz was a one-time leading lady for Vic in the television series ''Okay Ka, Fairy Ko ''when they got together sometime after he broke up with Coney Reyes. Angela Luz gave birth to Vic Sotto's fourth child, Paulina. Vic also had relationships with his fellow ''Eat Bulaga! ''co-hosts Christine Jacob in the early 1990s and Pia Guanio in the late 2000s, but both ended in a breakup. While Christina Jacob quit hosting ''Eat Bulaga! ''after ending the relationship, Pia Guanio decided to stay in the show. Eventually, Vic found his forever in young actress Pauleen Luna, who is also an ''Eat Bulaga! ''co-host. They were married on 30 January 2016. Pauleen gave birth to Vic's fifth child, Tallitha Maria. Segments 'Eat Bulaga's Lenten Special' '''Notable roles within ''Eat Bulaga!' Awards and nominations The following list only includes the awards and nominations of Tito Sotto for his contributions as a host on the noontime show ''Eat Bulaga! ''as well as other notable accolades for his important contributions to the Philippine entertainment industry. His achievements in the music and film industries as well as television accolades not associated with ''Eat Bulaga! ''are not listed. The list also excludes awards that he received as part of a group, such as VST & Co. and TVJ. '''Anak TV Seal Awards' The Anak TV Seal Awards are awarded annually to honor family-friendly television shows and personalities who exemplify good values to children. After being included in the list of star awardees seven times, Vic Sotto was elevated to the Makabata Hall of Fame in 2017. Box Office Entertainment Awards The Box Office Entertainment Awards for Television is an annual awards ceremony organized by the Guillermo Mendoza Memorial Scholarship Foundation, Inc. that honors stars and performers for their popularity and commercial success in the Philippine entertainment industry. Eastwood City Walk of Fame The Eastwood City Walk of Fame is a sidewalk along Eastwood City, Quezon City that serves as a Philippine entertainment hall of fame. It is embedded with hundreds of brass star plaques featuring the names of celebrities for their popularity and contributions to the entertainment industry. In 2010, Vic Sotto was inducted to the Walk of Fame along with Tito Sotto and Joey de Leon Golden Screen TV Awards The Golden Screen TV Awards is given annually by the Entertainment Press Society, Inc. to acknowledge the outstanding programs and personalities from different television networks in the country. Kagitingan Awards for Television Established in 2013, the Kagitingan Awards for Television are awarded annually by the Bataan Peninsula State University to recognize ten television personalities who depicted a sense of valor in their respective shows. NWSSU Students' Choice Awards for Radio and Television The Northwest Samar State University Students' Choice Awards for Radio and Television is an annual event that grants awards to programs and personalities that have great contributions in the field of broadcasting and entertainment. After winning five consecutive years in the same category, Vic Sotto was inducted in 2015 to the Circle of Excellence, which is the academe's specific term for its hall of fame. PEP List Awards The PEP List is presented by the Philippine Entertainment Portal to honor showbiz personalities, television shows, and movies that made a great impact in the year. The list is divided into two categories: Editors' Choice and PEPsters' Choice. The Editors' Choice subcategory is be chosen by the editors and staff of PEP, while the PEPsters' Choice subcategories is decided upon by PEP users through an online poll. Editors' Choice PEPsters' Choice PMPC Star Awards for Television Founded by the Philippine Movie Press Club in 1987, the PMPC Star Awards for Television is a major award-giving body that recognizes the outstanding programming produced by the several television networks in the Philippines. Reader's Digest Trusted Brands Awards The Trusted Brands Awards is a biennial awards ceremony presented by Reader's Digest Asia based on a survey conducted with thousands of consumers across seven markets in Asia to provide a credible source of review on the most trusted brands in the region. Vic Sotto was named as one of the most trusted personalities for his contributions in the Philippine entertainment industry. UmalohokJuan Awards The annual UmalohokJuan Awards is organized by the Lyceum of the Philippines to recognize media entities and personalities that epitomize excellence in the field of television and radio broadcasting, print, and public relations. Yahoo! Celebrity Awards Yahoo! Celebrity Awards (formerly Yahoo! OMG Awards) is an awards ceremony presented by Yahoo! Philippines that honors the most popular personalities and programs across television, movies, music, social media, and sports. The nominees are voted into the top ranks by their fans across the world. Category:Hosts Category:Pioneer Hosts Category:Dabarkads Category:TVJ